This holiday season, do yourself a favor: Steer clear of parking lots packed with cars and stores filled with lines that never end. Stop hunting for the gadget of the moment and settling for so-so gifts just so you have something –anything – to put under the tree.

Instead, seek out a gift that matters, not only to the person who will receive it but to the person who will sell it.

For the gourmet on your list, this is easy to do: New Jersey is bursting with small business owners who are passionate about food. These are people who traded corporate jobs for pastry school, young chefs who are paving their own way, and full-time workers who spend their nights perfecting recipes and trying out new ideas.

This season, let's show them some support: Here are five food gifts and experiences cooked up in the Garden State.

THE STORY: In 2014, Alessia Aron and Janis Borroto of Jersey City transformed their love of food into a business. The pair offers walking and bus tours that celebrate the food culture of the northern part of the state - Jersey City, Rutherford and Hoboken. "Each tour is about five to six restaurants," Aron said, adding that they work with 45 restaurants. "The difference between our tours and other tours is that we're all about the food; we're not skimpy with the food. And they are mostly seated, so you're not rushing through each place.

"Our signature tour is the Best of Downtown Food Tour," she said. This three-hour narrated walking tour includes restaurants in Jersey City. Another option is the Decadent Day Tripper, a four-and-a-half-hour bus tour planned for Jan. 15 that includes stops in four neighborhoods.

HOW MUCH: $75 to $100. Diners can add alcohol pairings for $15

MORE INFORMATION: Visithttp://jerseygirlsfoodtours.com or call 551-233-9553.

A recent Good Folk Supper Club dinner was served at at Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club.(Photo: COURTESY OF BETH HERBRUCK)

2) Dinner with Good Folk Supper Club

THE STORY: When Beth Herbruck of Atlantic Highlands moved to Monmouth County, she saw a void in the local dining scene and knew just how to fill it. She has lived all over - she's an Atlanta native who settled in Atlantic Highlands after time in New York and New Orleans – and "the thing that stuck out the most was my desire for a more interesting food experience here. Coming from Brooklyn and the city, and I have family in Los Angeles, there were more adventurous culinary things happening. I followed and attended tons of supper clubs all over and thought let's try this, let's see if it sticks. I think that people are craving something like this."

With that, she founded Good Folk Supper Club. The dinners, which are hosted once a month, start with a chef or location, which is never a restaurant or home kitchen. Once these details are decided upon, Herbruck emails potential guests with the date, the chef, the farms and vendors that will come together for the meal - but not the location. "Guests purchase a ticket beforehand and they don't find out where they're going until the day before," she said.

Chef and restaurateur Victor Rallo watches as his son Jake, 16, prepares a meal during a recent Good Folk Supper Club event.(Photo: COURTESY OF BETH HERBRUCK)

Recent dinners featured Chef Cesare De Chellis of B2 Bistro and Bar in Red Bank at the Sandy Hook Catamaran Club and 16-year-old Jake Rallo, an aspiring chef and the son of local restaurateur Victor Rallo, at his home.

HOW MUCH: Between $75 and $125. A portion of each evening's proceeds goes to a different local charity.

THE STORY: In 2013, Ray Sheehan of Neptune turned a lifetime of culinary experience into a business centered around something he loves: grilling. He honed his smoking techniques and joined a competition barbecue team, where his recipes – a Memphis-style sweet and tangy mop sauce and a rub spiked with chili powder, raw sugar,sea salt, onion, garlic, paprika and a few secret ingredients – became a hit. He eventually began bottling his products, which now are available in a number of Monmouth County shops.

WHERE TO FIND IT: Mr. Prime Old Thyme Butcher in Manasquan, Matt's Farm Market in Belmar, Valente’s Italian Deli in Wall, Pat's Market and Sabato's Prime Meats in Middletown, Esposito’s Fish Market in Ocean Township, Richard's New York Style Deli in Long Branch and Monmouth Meats in Red Bank.

Memphis Mop Sauce and Belly Rub are two of the products in the BBQ Buddha line.(Photo: COURTESY OF RAY SHEEHAN)

4) A tour from Brew Bus NJ

THE STORY: Last year, Scott and Sue Akins of Vineland took a brewery bus tour while on vacation in Maine and loved it. "They took you to all the different breweries and told the story of the brewery, and it was really cool," Scott Akins said. When they came back to New Jersey, they brought the idea with them and started Brew Bus NJ, a tour company that celebrates small, hometown breweries and craft beer.

The Akins have five tours planned right now - Cheers for Beers (Dec. 17 in Monmouth County), Ugly Sweater Brewery Crawl (Dec. 17 in Camden County), February tours in Philadelphia and Cape May, and St. Patrick's Day tours. "We try to do different areas so you don't get tired of it," he said. Buses make a loop between the breweries and guests can spend as much time at each stop as they like.

A holiday gift set from Hudson Coffee Co.(Photo: COURTESY OF HUDSON COFFEE CO.)

5) Locally roasted coffee

WHAT: A steaming hot mug of coffee is the perfect match for the wintry days to come, and a bag of freshly roasted beans from a local roaster makes a great gift.

WHERE: Here are a few options:

Rook Coffee: Treat the coffee lover on your list to a gift subscription delivered weekly, biweekly or monthly (prices vary depending on variety and frequency of delivery) or a gift box complete with mugs and coffee ($21.75 to $104).

Booskerdoo Fresh Roasted Coffee Co. offers a coffee of the month club that ships two, three or four pounds of coffee once a month for six months ($133 to $311).

Turnstile Coffee Roasters in Belmar has a holiday gift box trio that "is a great gift idea as it includes coffee from each of the three main coffee-producing regions of the world and is all organic," owner Mike Ayars said. "It comes complete with a card that describes the coffees." ($35).

Hudson Coffee Co. is the coffee-production branch of Hudson Cafe in Atlantic Highlands. Co-owner Janine Cappadona learned to roast coffee for the restaurant last year and has since expanded: Hudson Coffee Co. can be found at Shore ShopRite stores and at other local markets. For the holidays, chose a gift set of gingerbread coffee and a mug ($15) or bags of coffee ($8.99 each).

Jersey Shore Coffee Roasters offers a coffee of the month club that ships one or two pounds of freshly roasted coffee the first week of the month for three, six or twelve months ($69.99 to $279.99).

Coffee Corral: Choose from eight types of beans, from Ethiopian and Brazilian varieties to Jamaica Blue Mountain: "I think we are actually one of the only roasters/coffee shops locally to carry it, as it is hard to get and a truly high-end, special coffee," employee Courtlyn Crosson said. ($14 to $85).

Treat the coffee lover on your list to a bag of beans from Booskerdoo Fresh Roasted Coffee Co.(Photo: COURTESY OF JAMES CAVERLY)